


You've got a friend in me (actually, family)

by overjoyedflowers



Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Found Family, Gen, Reunion, a little bit of fluff to cheer up the angst of nov 16, and tubbo is fundy's cousin, fundy regrets his actions, fundy wants to meet his family, i just wanted tubbo and fundy family dynamic sorta, ignore the logistics of it, niki is the best mother figure, no beta we die like wilbur's animals in his skyblock randomiser, so he does, techno and tommy are technically fundy's uncles, the stream was so fucking crazy and chaotic, we also get some redemptions, wilbur and fundy make up
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-18
Updated: 2020-11-18
Packaged: 2021-03-10 03:42:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,029
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27597035
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/overjoyedflowers/pseuds/overjoyedflowers
Summary: All this time, his head had been so wrapped up in the revolution and the first war, to the justice war he declared and fought in for his pets, to the destruction of L’manburg and tyrannous rule of Manburg, that he forgot about what it means to be family.//Aka. Fundy decides he wants to make amends, and meet his family.
Relationships: ALL OF THESE ARE PLATONIC, Floris | Fundy & Dave | Technoblade, Floris | Fundy & Niki | Nihachu, Floris | Fundy & Toby Smith | Tubbo, Floris | Fundy & TommyInnit, Floris | Fundy & Wilbur Soot, familyyyyyy - Relationship
Comments: 3
Kudos: 222





	You've got a friend in me (actually, family)

It had been months since Fundy was last around any of his family.

After Tubbo had left Manburg following the horrific festival events, he had been left alone with Quackity and Schlatt to see the future of Manburg (he fucking hated the name, it was so dumb). He understood why his cousin had to flee, but that didn't make the pain hurt any less as he stood by the President's side and pretended to still be in support of his rulings and policies. Now, he was alone. He had no family to fall back upon in desperate times, and he certainly didn't have his father to turn too when he was unsure if his actions or ideas were right, all he had was himself. 

So when he finally escaped Manburg and, after an excruciating moment of still silence in which Wilbur flicked through the frayed pages of his spy diary to understand who he was during this whole ordeal, accepted into Pogtopia, one of the first things he wanted to do was meet his family. He had encountered his first uncle, Tommy, back in L'manburg days when all that mattered was fighting for independence and freedom, and he had met his second uncle, Techno, during the fight at the festival (in which he lost terribly to him while everyone cheered his demise.. it didn't hurt, honest). Though these encounters left sour tastes in the two family member's mouths, and even his own, so Fundy set out to make things right between them and admit his wrongdoings. He also had a certain father to apologise too, a lovable second cousin to reunite with again, and a mother figure he was desperate to achieve forgiveness and, hopefully, friendship from again.

And there was no better time to start now, days before the final revolution war.

||

He encountered Techno first.

It wasn't hard to find the prominent figure of the King Warrior, draped in his long, flowing red cape that framed his entire figure and held stories of war and eras long past. The royal outfit he wore underneath also made him stand out, with no one else other than Eret sharing such an attire, proving his involvement in the monarchy and revealing more puzzle pieces of his past. Despite these clues, Fundy was still clueless as to who 'The Blade' truly was as a person, what type of man lay beneath the strong cape and mighty sword he held, what emotions were held back by his eyes said to be 'stone cold' and 'terrifying to the core'. Well he was about to find out, as he skipped his way down the first set of stairs and sat next to Techno on the bridge, overlooking the passage of Pogtopia.

"Hey Techno," Fundy began, keeping his voice simple and calm. He had to make a good impression, and prove himself to be better than the human being he was months ago, the cocky teenager who wanted to fight him in the ring to gain some sort of justice he never had (it was foolish to think he could stand up to such a powerful figure).

"Hey Fundy," his voice was monotone, and the words echoed in the desolate cave beneath them for what Fundy felt was ages. Techno continued to stare out ahead of him, his eyes tracing the detailed textures of the multicoloured buttons scattered on the wall, each having been placed with no ill intentions though they were twisted to bring fear to Pogtopians (he cursed Schlatt for using his own prank, his most common way of showing love and affection, against his family).

"How's it going?" Fundy attempts to strike up a conversation, ignoring the slight pause in his words as he spoke. The awkwardness that seemed to follow him everywhere was beginning to make its presence known again, and the fox wasn't too keen on the timing of it right now.

"Going pretty good," Techno began, still staring out ahead of him, "Well as good as any person could be when a revolution is right upon the doorstep, not that I'm really affected by it. I've had my fair share of wars and revolutions that have ended in only minutes, so I'm not too worried about this one."

Fundy was intrigued by this. For Techno to not be so fazed in his demeanour over something so dangerous as war, he must have some continuous past of repetitive wars that must have numbed his emotions to the word. He was desperate to know that past, to figure out who his family member really was, but he was scared he was going to cross boundaries in asking him. He realised he had to take it slow and careful, and so that's what he did.

"What do you mean by that, Techno?" For the first time since the festival, Techno had finally turned to face Fundy, and through the broken lamp dangling from a flimsy chain above them, he saw the cold stare in the warriors eyes. The fox felt unnerved, and he began to fiddle with his sleeve to calm himself down at the stare that seemed to last for ages, until finally the Blade sighed and spoke up.

"A while back, probably a few years now, I was involved in a faction called the Antarctic Empire," Techno began, turning to look around as Fundy assumed he began to reminisce on the memories he held onto. "The Empire was vast and popular, and I ruled it along with my father Phil and friend Pete. It was.. a glorious Empire, one that sparked fear into enemy's who heard our name, one that sent dread when cried that we were going to war with them. This newfound popularity was what led us to be an attractive target to those wanting a fight, and those wanting power. There was a time period where each day was technically war, but luckily we never died, we kept our heads up high and protected our land from devastation. We were technically the royalty in this world, and its actually the place I got my signature red cape," Techno gently picked up the white fabric lining the edges of his cape, which were dotted in black spots, he sighed. "Phil gave it to me, as a gift. He said it was for everything I had done for him and the Empire. I thanked him and put it on, and I've never taken it off since. I refuse to."

Fundy sat still in surprise for a few moments, trying to comprehend everything that Techno had explained to him. The royalty background of Techno was true, and the endless wars from those desperate for power made sense as to why Techno was so desensitised to the word nowadays. He almost felt bad for his uncle having to live this type of lifestyle, but then he realised how much his uncle loved taking down his enemies and wielding a trusty diamond sword into battle. It was second nature for him to fight those against his views, and from what he's heard: the pig never takes a fall. 

"Man, your skills must be extraordinary," Fundy complimented, hearing as Techno laughed and glanced towards him again with a smirk growing on his face.

"You could say that," Techno commented, a hint of amusement and pride lacing his tone, "I like to think that my fighting was already skilled, even before I joined a faction so big as the Empire. I've always had a knack for PvP, it's my speciality in this world I guess. I take pride in being the best I can be, and I strive to learn new tips and tricks in order to take down my enemies in more surprising ways than they could ever imagine."

Fundy nodded, and then suddenly an idea struck him. You see, the fox knew he was never really good at PvP, hell he had died to Schlatt of all people at the festival in the ring (could he ever live that down? The man was so weak, and yet he died to him, so what did that make Fundy?), and couldn't even stand his own during times of bullying. He needed some sort of training lessons to prove himself worthy of fighting in this revolution, and hopefully he could achieve those skills from the Blade himself. Maybe if he asked the correct words he would be accepted, and soon Fundy will become a legend like the Blade.

"Hey Techno," Fundy began, interrupting the small monologue the elder had began about his PvP endeavours, and his improved skill levels nowadays due to them. 

He stopped, turning to face Fundy. "Mhm?"

"Could you teach me some PvP skills, make me a better fighter? To prepare for the war?"

To Fundy's utter surprise, Techno nods his head with a smile. "Sure, why not? You’ve seem like you need help kid, sorry about destroying you in the festival."

Ah, the festival. Fundy doesn't like to remember the time he met an unfortunate death to Techno's sword in the red and blue patterned ring, and how weak he felt when he respawned in bed by the grounds, where cheers echoed in the distance at his demise. He knew his challenge to fight Techno was going to end in shambles, but he did not realise how talented Techno was at fighting compared to him. Fundy laughs to himself, and wonders how many people made bets about the seconds in which it took for Fundy to die to him as he put up no fight at all.

"It's alright, Blade," Fundy says, smiling to show his positive feelings towards the event, "I deserved it after trying to drown you in the dunking pit, which was a shitty move on my part. I'm very sorry I even tried to do that."

Techno didn't seem to falter when he brought up the water, in fact he only nodded his head and even laughed a little, stopping after a second to regain his composure. "It's alright, you helped me out to be honest. You tested the waters for how long I can breathe underwater, turns out I had more in me than previously thought. Gonna go far with that knowledge, so thank you, Fundy."

Fundy, for the second time this conversation, sat still for a couple of seconds, before he laughed slightly and nodded his head. He wasn't sure if he should say "you're welcome" to Techno's comment, or if he should leave it speechless and share communication through emotions and facial expressions, maybe even movements. Deciding he should keep quiet, he continues the nod and cracks a smile again, before it fades back to the thin line he usually kept his lips in.

Techno suddenly glanced down at his wrist, sighed and picked himself up. "I've got to leave now, Fundy, important business to attend too."

Fundy shakes his head. "It's okay, good luck with the business."

Techno begins to walk down the cobblestone steps of the newly formed nation, before he stops and turns to face Fundy from where he stands. The fox looks down at him, and they catch eyes for a split second in the dying lantern light. Techno clears his throat. "Tomorrow, 10am sharp, the Pit. I'll give you your first training lesson in combat. Be prepared, I wont go so easy on ya."

Fundy smiles as he watches Techno saunter away, towards wherever his next destination may be, and he reflects on the conversation. He had achieved some form of communication with his uncle, and with the promise that he would be training him to fight, the fox feels inclined to believe he achieved a form of friendship with his uncle. Things were looking up for the dysfunctional family relationships he had right now. 

||

He meets Tommy second.

The first time they come across each other after the meeting in Pogtopia, is when Fundy is coming back from his latest project deep into the DreamSMP forest: he had found a Pillager outpost, and was desperate to ransack the place and grab as many crossbows as he could to help build up their weapons for the war. Tommy was sitting beside the lake that shimmered under the tall tower, and was seemingly picking at the grass with his sword, digging out circles in a sort of angered way. When he had approached the boy, that's when he had looked up and caught sight of him, and Tommy went stiff.

"What do you want Fundy?" his voice was cold, sharp, unforgiving, and frankly Fundy did not expect less. Even after he allowed Tommy to read his diary to prove that it was handwritten and noted by he himself, the younger still did not trust him and his intentions.

”Would you mind if I join you for a while, we don't have to talk or anything,” Fundy asks, waiting to hear the younger’s response as he dances on the balls of his feet, distracting himself by glancing at the stream glimmering before him, the sound pleasant and natural. 

He hears Tommy sigh as he stabs the sword in the ground, the blade wobbling at his force. “Okay fine, but no funny business alright?”

Fundy smiles a little. “Promise.”

He takes a seat down beside the stream, on the opposite side to Tommy in order to give the younger some space. It was extremely obvious that he did not trust him after everything he did, and he cant blame him: he burnt down the flag, a symbol to their nation, he was one of the first human beings to have committed such an act. Forgiveness does not come easy, but that does not mean Fundy isn’t willing to try. 

Fundy begins to pick up blades of grass and, using the sewing skills Niki had once taught him in her bakery, began to weave them together to make some sort of crown. He carefully plucked the ground around him and placed the grass in the grooves, ensuring the crown was fitting and intact. The precision he focused himself to complete was challenging, and he slowly continued the weaving so as to not ruin the crown. He got so caught up in his activity, he failed to notice Tommy was staring at him until he coughed to gain his attention. 

Fundy glanced up, and saw Tommy’s intent look towards the craftsmanship of his crown, before he stared into his eyes. “So why’d you do it?”

”Do what?” Fundy asked, fixated on his project of completing the grass crown. 

“Side with Schlatt?” Tommy answered, his tone becoming dark when addressing the current Manburg president, showing how he felt over the situation. Fundy sighs from where he sits, continuing to pick at the vast sea of green beneath him. 

“I already told you it was to gain trust,” he says, carefully intertwining a grass blade in to the nearly completed crown (when had he become so good at them?). “I also already told you I regret ever siding with Schlatt, and if I could take it all back I would but.. but I cant.”

”You burnt the flag,” the phrase is blunt but the words cut deeper than a knife. 

Fundy falters in his weaving. He places the crown down on his knees and finally turns to face Tommy from where he sits on the opposite side, sword sticking out of the ground. “I know I did, Tommy, and it was stupid of me. I hate the fact that I burnt the flag of the nation I was born in, I hate the fact that I did many things under Manburg rule, but I can’t take them back Tommy, I genuinely can’t.”

Tommy narrows his eyes at the outburst, falling silent for a minute or two. Fundy cannot bare to face his suspicious face any longer, so he focuses his attention back to finishing the crown on his knees. 

Finally Tommy’s voice cuts through the tense silence. “How can I trust you?”

Fundy stops, and glances up at his uncle. “You wanna know where I was beforehand?”

Tommy nods, curious, and so he continues. “I found this Pillager outpost a few miles out, and I cornered it off in order to attain resources. I’m hoping to gain a lot of weapons for us to fight with in the war, to be of use.”

Tommy smirks a little, and Fundy is shocked until he hears the younger speak. “Crossbows, I like it. Mean style.”

Fundy sighs, reciting a line his father had told him during the first revolution war. “No one ever wins wars with weak tactics, you have to fight fire with more fire.”

Silence falls between them again as Tommy agrees with the statement, before going back to drawing circles in the dirt with his sword. Fundy decides to reveal to Tommy the familial relationship he technically has with the boy. 

“You’re Wil’s brother right?” he asks, breaking the silence once more. 

Tommy nods. “Yep.”

”And I’m Wilbur’s son, right?” Fundy continues, his hands focusing on the crown as he speaks.

”Last I checked, yeah” Tommy answers, and Fundy smiles as he concludes his point. 

“So that technically makes you my uncle, and I your nephew, so because of this family stuff I want to apologise to you and make it up to you, Wil and Techno again. I want to prove that I am truly on your side, forever and always on your side, even if I do bad things I have no ill intentions.”

Tommy hesitates for a second, before he nods. “Okay, I appreciate your dedication to apologise and make amends, and you have guts in starting up friendships again. Listen Fundy, I don’t trust you right now, big man, but I might by the end of this war. Who knows, maybe I’ll be proved wrong by you.”

Fundy smiles, expecting this sort of hesitant answer. He nods as he finishes the crown up, holding it up to the clear blue sky as if in pride at his creation. “It’s okay, I would not trust me fully either. But I promise you I did have my intentions set for L’manburg. When I ran for Coconut2020, the future I envisioned of peace and prosperity is still here in me. I want L’manburg back, and I want peace. The actions I did weren’t peaceful, and I regret them deeply, but I hope you understand that I’m still the same little guy you met once before.”

Tommy doesn't respond. So Fundy picks himself up off the grassy floor, and walks around the still lake towards him, who still rests on the ground in a cross-legged position. The fox leans down next to the boy, and, in a peaceful silence that sparsely happens between the two, he places the grass crown on top of his head. 

“You’re a fierce warrior Tommy, and you’re going to win us this battle.”

He stands up again, and dusts off the dirt and grass that stuck to his clothing, before turning to walk away towards Pogtopia. Giving one last glance, Fundy is not disappointed to find that Tommy is still wearing the crown. 

It would take a while for the wounds to fully heal between the two, but the hardest part - the foundation of the friendship bridge - had been established and partially constructed. He would finish the bridge eventually, and things will go back to the way they were in L’manburg a year back. 

||

He encounters Wilbur third.

After a tiring day of collecting materials and resources, which included him journeying to the Nether to grab the shiny scraps needed to create the strongest armour possible, he finally made it back home to the manmade cavern. The oil lamps had been lit, and Fundy watched, mesmerised, as they swung back and forth from their long, rusty chains connected to the stone ceiling. The bridges lay desolate, and he figured everyone was still either busy or asleep, considering the moon had been high up in the sky when he found his way back to the nation. He figured Pogtopia was empty, until he rounded a corner and came face-to-face with his father.

Wilbur looked to be fairing a lot worse than before. His once grand and proud posture that he maintained throughout the L'manburg war was gone, replaced by a more hunched and secluded posture that dared anyone to communicate with him; his pristine, navy blue uniform of L'manburg that screamed pride and prosperity for the future of his nation had been thrown away months ago, replaced by a brown trench coat littered in tears and stains; and finally, the most obvious change to Wilbur, was his face. The usual joyful and confident expression mixed with the devilish smirks that comforted Fundy during his childhood, was replaced with a cold, almost distant look in his dilated eyes, with large bags resting underneath them. This was not the man who raised him, but then again he could still see a part of Wilbur still there.

"Son," Wilbur called, voice bouncing off the walls. Fundy spotted the all too familiar book in his hand, the sturdy cover displaying the imprinted words "A Spy's Diary", illuminated in the dancing flames of the lamps above them. He sighed, remembering a frequent occurrence he had in Manburg; spend time with President Schlatt, learn some sort of salient information (hopefully free of any verbal abuse from the often drunk man), and then venture to his hidden base to write in the pages his findings. Each day was a struggle as he picked up that ink and quill, and once he had shakenly dropped the quill when he was in the middle of writing one of his personal passages; specifically the one about his friends and family. He missed them so much when he was in Manburg, but now he had to understand that he was not there anymore. Instead he was in Pogtopia, surrounded by his family, surrounded by those who loved him.

"Hi Dad," Fundy replied, sending a half hearted smile to his father in hopes of him returning the same, or similar, gesture of greeting. Wilbur's face, however, did not: it continued to stay stuck in this saddened position, the book weakly hanging in his grasp, which caused dread to rise in the fox boy. What had his father read in that book to make him so upset?

"Fundy, I-," he falters in his words, pausing for a moment, and the silence gently falls between them like a light winter snowfall, "I read your diary, in full. I-I read the words you wrote about your experiences, and the things you did while pretending to be on his side. Oh god son, I'm so fucking sorry you had to go through all that, and I promise you I don't hate you."

This is when Fundy freezes, and the phrase repeats itself in his mind, engraving into the most inner parts of his brain. He wasn't hated. His father did not hate him. The relief that washed over him when he allowed the words to sink in was euphoric, and he held back the tears that wanted to fall in happiness that he still maintained his relationship with his father even after his actions. Everything was going to be okay.

"Let me give you a hug, son," Wilbur calls, and he opens his arms wide as an invitation for him to hug the man. Fundy does not hesitate, instead he sprints over and accepts the affection with no second to waste. The arms wrapping around him and pulling him close reminds him of a time when he was younger, when Wilbur actually gave affection frequently and attention that he craved constantly. This craving had been starved for months on end now, and to finally feed it with a hug from his father made everything better than it previously was. The arms did not go away, and so Fundy buried his head further into his father's chest.

"How did you do all this, my son?" Wilbur's voice is soft, gentle, almost a whisper; as if he did not want to break the peacefulness of the crucial moment between them. Fundy then feels the two of them slightly sway from side to side as the hug continues, and then feels a weight on top of his head that moves when his father continues to speak: "How did you manage to stay in Manburg for so long?"

Fundy answers as honestly as possible: "I had to do it for my country, dad, for L'manburg."

The words echo in the cavern for a while, resonating in Wilbur's mind as the hug continues. He figured it had been a minute since it had began now, and thinking back to previous hugs he's had, Fundy believes this is the longest one yet. The longest and also most meaningful hug. At least he managed to have it in his teenage years and not back in his childhood, which he barely remembers from blocking out the bloody and terrifying memories of the war.

"Oh I'm so proud of you son," Wilbur says, his voice louder than before. Fundy closes his eyes and allows his father to speak, holding on a little tighter than before; he was afraid he would lose this moment if his grasp was weak. "I'm so, so proud of you. I know I don't say it often, and that was not a good thing for me to do, but I can start now," Wilbur pauses for a second, before a sigh escapes his lips, "I'm so sorry I couldn't be the father you wanted me to be. The ignorance and neglect was all on me, and I take all responsibility for my ill actions towards you, my own son. I should have looked out for you more, promised Sally more, and maybe things would have turned out so differently for the both of us.”

Fundy listens to his father's pained words, and he feels the heartstrings of his bruised and battered hurt be pulled. He didn't want his father blaming himself for everything wrong during this moment, he didn't want any self-negativity in such a needed heartfelt moment between father and son. And not to mention that there was still a chance to change, so Fundy decided to remind his father of the hopeful future on the horizon for the broken family: “Hey Dad it’s okay, we can still change the future you know. L’manburg is in your grasp, you can take it back in a few days. Soon we’ll be back to normal, and everything will be as it should.”

Wilbur chuckles slightly, the tension in the air easing as his contagious voice fills Pogtopia in the absence of the other members. "Always thinking on the brightside, aren't you? Always so joyful. You're like a ray of sunshine, _my_ ray of sunshine. You helped me out during the first major war by just being here, Fundy, and being by my side when I needed you most. I knew that, when I stared into your hopeful eyes, what I was doing - fighting Dream and Sapnap and George and Punz and whoever else dared beat us down - for L'manburg was right. It was right for me; it was right for you; it was right for Tommy, Tubbo and Jack; and it was right for the citizens. And I'm so thankful for you, son."

Fundy smiles, pulling back slightly to stare up into his father's eyes. He sees the tears that shine behind them, desperate to fall like his did a few minutes ago. He also sees something he never thought he would see again: the old Wil. Part of his face seems to morph into the younger version of him, beaming down at his son who - at the time - would have been half his age and a quarter in his size. The Wil who could radiate a room with just one smile, or encourage an uproar with only a few words. The Wil who created a nation for those desperate to escape the tyranny of the DreamSMP rulers. The father Wil.

He leans back into the hug again, mumbling into his father's shoulder. "I'm so thankful for you Dad."

He feels the arms around him squeeze tighter, and he holds on tighter in response. The two of them will not let go of each other this time, especially not after what happened with Pogtopia and Manburg, and promise to stay by each others side. Fundy imagines himself in a few months time, standing by his father's side as L'manburg is finally restored back to its former self; no obsidian flag (he couldn't deny it was an eyesore, even if he made it.), no broken down ruins, no scattered festival stalls left standing after the eventful day. It would be back to normal, back to what he remembered it as.

However he misses the way his Dad's eyes sparkle with a hint of mischief before he plants his face in Fundy's hair, holding his son closer than ever.

||

Tubbo is the fourth encounter.

He finds his second cousin standing idly in the experience farm, throwing his diamond sword back and forth between his hands while he waits for the spiders to spawn in again in masses, only to slaughter them and gain XP that would allow him to enchant his items. He seems stressed, and Fundy can see from where he stands the sweat that runs down his face and the faltering, hesitant smile on his lips as he greeted the fox. He frowns, disapproving of the look his second cousin is currently sporting as the war edges nearer and nearer. Although the war was tomorrow, he hated seeing Tubbo so worked up over something like this when it wasn't even his fault, to the point he was overworking himself to calm down his never ending build up of stress.

"Tubster," Tubbo turns to face him, and Fundy tries to ignore the way his eyes shake like a leaf, darting from one corner of his eyelid to the other. He takes a careful approach, placing one foot forward as he speaks in a calming manner. "You're going to overwork yourself here."

"Sorry," Tubbo apologises, and Fundy curses at the fact that his cousin even needed to feel that he had to apologise. There was nothing he had done wrong in this situation to cause anything like a war to happen, and he wished his cousin would stop apologising for the small mistakes he makes when they're so insignificant in the long run, "Really I am, I thought I was prepared but I’m really not, the war is tomorrow Fundy, how are we meant to win when he have so little-"

Fundy notices the build up of anxiety, and so he takes immediate action. Gently rushing towards Tubbo, he places his hands gently on the others shoulder and attempts to ground him before he became too panicked. ”Hey relax buddy,” he begins, voice even softer than before as to not aggravate or provoke anymore panic or stress in the younger. In that moment, as he's staring into his cousin's eyes, he remembers a certain memory that relates to their current situation. “Remember our first Dreamon Hunt, and how we came across the most powerful Dreamon out there: who ended up to be our friend Dream."

Tubbo's panicked looks falls into one of concern, eyebrow raised as the clogs turn in his head to reveal that day when the two of them hunted Dreamons. When he recalls the moment, he nods his head slowly and turns back to Fundy. "Dream, yeah-yeah I remember, why are you-"

Fundy doesn't allow the younger to finish his sentence, instead he continues on with his anecdote that he hopes will be beneficial to the younger once he introduces the main ideas. He can't have the younger panicking over the war. "-And remember when we attempted the ritual to cure him, and we believed that was all we had to do to bring back the normal Dream. And we did manage to get him back, but then we had more work on our hands when he found out he was still a Dreamon through our testing. Do you remember when we were both outta plans? Until finally one came for me outta nowhere on the spot. And it near enough worked.”

Tubbo nods along to the story, recalling all these memories as if they just happened. He can still recall the explosion they ended up experiencing, and how they were thrown backwards by about ten feet before smashing into the ground. He was surprised he wasn't that badly injured that day, and instead was able to finish the ritual with Fundy. Then he began to wonder why his cousin was bringing this up in such a scary time, when all they should be thinking about is the looming threat of war that was coming tomorrow. “Yeah Fundy why are you telling me this?”

Fundy smiles, squeezing Tubbo's shoulder in reassurance as he looks into the younger's eyes to provide comfort. "Not everything has to be perfectly planned out, Tubbo, the world isn’t a script that will obey your ideas. We have to be prepared to fight and change plans in seconds, even if they are carefully calculated. Nothing can be precise, so don’t worry too much on war plans. We can improvise it all."

Tubbo nods, understanding the reasoning behind the elders' words. He knew that the world was unpredictable and scary, and that the plans and ideas he had in his head of how it could possibly go could be far from the actual truth. But then again, he knows how sparse they are on materials and weapons to fight in this war; and those will drastically affect the script in a negative way. He turns to face Fundy, eyes wide in fear.

"But materials-," he begins, though Fundy shushes him lightly and beckons for him to follow. Tubbo does, curious as to what Fundy wanted to show him during this conversation they were having. He was led into the tunnelled out cave by the XP farm, where chests upon chests lay beside each other, filled with random items others had dumped here to save space or items that were never collected in the end. He watches as Fundy kneels down next to a certain chest, and opens it up with a grin plastered on his face. He walks around to see what he was grinning at so passionately.

Fundy doesn't miss the way his cousin gasps in excitement and shock at the bundle of crossbows in the chest, each loaded with an arrow and many others to spare sitting underneath the weapons. He contains his own laughter as he sees the boy kneel next to him, hand carefully picking out one of the bows on the top to inspect it. His eyes sparkle like diamonds as he traces his finger down the weapon, feeling its power resonate in his hands, and the fox speaks up.

"Pillager outposts are useful."

Tubbo looks up at him, and laughs a little at the nonchalant statement to the reveal of so many weaponry material. "They really are huh."

Fundy laughs back, before he grabs a handful of the crossbows and picks himself up, using the chest as support. He waits as Tubbo follows his movements, before he turns to face the boy with a determined smirk on his face: "Let's enchant these bad boys, we have a war too win."

Tubbo smirks back, all feelings of panic and overwhelming stress having been watered down to only a trickle of fear that was left in his mind. He felt more confident than ever holding these weapons in his hands. "A war too win." , he repeats, echoing the phrase to emphasise his determination to actively achieve their goal.

Fundy spends many hours afterwards with his cousin, the two discussing enchantments and their abilities, and how useful they will be in the upcoming war. They then move onto testing out the weapons to see their strength, and the range they have on them. All while they prepared their crossbows, they reflected on countless memories they held in L'manburg and even places outside the DreamSMP, attempting to bond further than they did before. Throughout that night, Fundy could not wipe the grin off his face as he interacted with his cousin like they used to before, relieved the war had not changed their friendship.

||

The final person he encounters is Niki.

He almost doesn't want to face her, and see the pain reflected through her eyes over what he did. He wants to curl up in his bed and never escape from the safety of his duvet, just ignore the world around him as the looming sense of dread over the unfinished closure between him and Niki grew larger and larger. In fact, Fundy wasn't technically prepared to face Niki at this time: dawn of the fateful day of the war, sitting on top of the hill Pogtopia lay underneath, watching the sun creep over the mountains in the distance and cast its light across the lands. 

Though when he's already woken up thirty minutes ago and already established the fact he can't fall back asleep, and having climbed up the steps and out into the cold night air to climb the hill, he wont abandon this chance. Niki is sat up here, alone, distracted by the mesmerising rays of the sun and the colour palette night sky, and so he takes this opportunity to tiptoe his way towards her. Once by her side, he carefully sits down beside her. The two don't share any form of greeting or sense of camaraderie, but Fundy accepted that he wouldn't be deserving of the overall friendly nature of his previous running mate. 

They sit in silence for a while, just watching the sun rise further and further above the darkened shapes of mountains in the distance, symbolising the ticking clock of time that counted down the hours, minutes and even seconds till war broke loss between the two nations. He stares at the clouds passing by above them, illuminated in hues of orange and red as they gently fly by, free from the pain of the Earth below them. He then begins to feel like he's suffocating in this silence, and glancing towards Niki it appears she hasn't even acknowledged his existence yet. He realised it was now or never if he was going to apologise, and he had to ensure the war was not lost because of his shitty actions.

"I should not have done the things I did, and I apologise for them so much," he states, his voice cutting the tense silence between the two. Niki doesn't take notice, continuing to stare ahead of her at the beautiful sunrise as his voice is carried away by the breeze surrounding them. He sighs, ears drooping on his head as he glances away. Since when had it become so hard for him to talk to the person he felt he was closest with in L'manburg (since he burned down her own flag and accidentally killed their pet bee, that's what.)? 

Despite the silence, Fundy decides to continue with his sad spiel of emotions. At least he could give some sort of explanation as to why he committed the actions he did to her, and also make amends between the two for one day to help them win. He wouldn't mind if Niki ended up letting him go after today, and deciding to never speak to him ever again. "What I did was horrendous, horrific. I tore down a nation I was born into while acting snarky, I went against what Coconut2020 stood for, I changed without ever giving you a proper explanation as to why. I can’t imagine the amount of pain you went through cause of me, fuck I don’t deserve to even have your friendship after this is all said and done.”

Again, the words are followed by silence from the other. However, from Niki's slight head turn he can tell she's listening to him speak. He smiles, recalling a certain memory when times were more peaceful. When the two of them had opened up their newly formed bakery, and how Niki had jokingly pretended to ignore him the whole day after he purposefully tried to aggravate her the previous day. He had made countless of jokes which he knew Niki would laugh at, and it was hilarious watching her bite her lip hard as she turned away and pretended she could not hear the fox. Those were good times, times when no one was afraid for the future of their nation and no one feared that this may be their demise. 

More memories ended up following the first, and he couldn't help but share them with her. "Remember when we built that bakery together? And it was our first day serving customers of the SMP and L’manburg with our goods, and I ended up causing the flour to go everywhere and burned the first batch of cookies? Remember when you laughed at my stupidity before helping me up, and then serving the customer properly with an apology to the situation. I remember other times where we ran the bakery, like when you forgot to put in the chocolate chip for the cookies in the cooking process, and so we had no chocolate chip cookies that day, or when I played RNG with the customers as to what they got and you got pissed at me for doing so."

By now he's used to the silence after his words, as if they are the more active participator in this conversation than Niki beside him. He can't keep blaming her for ignoring him, no one would want to communicate so freely with the man who broke years of trust without ever giving a second thought as to how it would effect the other emotionally and physically. He feels an odd sense of Deja vu, when his trust with Wilbur was broken as he basically denied any familial relationship with the man to Schlatt to gain more trust from the ram president. That feeling then turns to bittersweet as he recalls the time he ended up calling Niki 'mother' once in front of her, and she froze for a second before accepting this new role she had in the family.

“I still consider you a mother, Niki. Will forever consider you one. A parental figure like Wil, but only.. More close I guess. I chose you to be the secondary figure in my life, to replace Sally, and I’m so glad I did. The memories I hold with you in them are the most fondest, and I can’t imagine a world without you in it. You mean so much to me Niki, even if I don’t mean much to you.”

With another round of silence following his words, and with the sun clearing the mountains ahead of them now, he begins to pick himself up to start a useful task, like make breakfast or check over weaponry and armoury. He was about to do that, until he feels a hand grasp his elbow quickly and keep him there. Fundy freezes, before he turns around slowly, and comes face-to-face with Niki. Instead of the hurtful, angry or disappointed expression he expected her face to hold when she would turn to face him, her face was scrunched up by the large smile she wore, and her eyes sparkled in the morning sun. Fundy sat back down on the ground again as Niki cleared her throat, attention directed to him rather than the scenery in front of them.

"I remember those memories, Fungi,” Niki says, her voice soft and gentle, though all the fox can focus on is the nickname she says to him. ' _Fungi'_ , Fundy’s heart aches at the name that she and Eret only used to call him. “I remember them all, they’re some of my most fondest too. Fundy, you made my time In L’manburg worthwhile, so much more than others before. Although I’m thankful for those like Wilbur and Tommy and Tubbo, it was you who made me stay in L’manburg so often. Being your running mate in the presidency was one of the best things I’ve done, I’ve become so much more confident than I previously was. I’m a better person nowadays because of you, so thank you Fundy. And I do forgive you, what you did was horrible but I believe in second chances.”

Fundy sat still for a few seconds, and thought over the words again. He couldn't believe that Niki had accepted his terrible apology, and was even willing to be friends again by giving him a second chance. She was a saint of a human being for putting so much trust into those who betrayed her, and yet still remaining that friendship trust even after disastrous betrayals like his. He concluded that no one deserved the kindness of Niki, or her large beating heart that seemed to care for even the coldest of people in the lands.

Fundy smiles at her. "I don’t deserve you Niki, the world doesn’t deserve you."

Niki shakes her head, turning back to face the painting like sunrise before them. "You do Fundy, everyone deserves a friend in their life. No one is too far gone to not have a friend by their side."

Fundy allows her words to echo in his mind as they spend the last peaceful moments of the day together, in a more comfortable silence than beforehand, as they watch the minutes tick by through the rising ball of flame. They try to ignore the looming violence that threatened to trample their serenity, and definitely ignored the possibilities of how today could end during a fight so large as this, and they also ignored the scary idea that someone amongst them was a traitor for the enemy. For now, they had each other, and that was all Fundy wanted as he breathed in the fresh air around him.

||

A few hours had passed since that moment, and here he was stood now, decked out in his netherite armour outside Pogtopia as the war counted down its final seconds.

Fundy looked around those who had gathered, and noticed a few things that made him smile. Technoblade was still wearing his cape, the material blowing majestically in the wind as he stood like a proud hero of a battle should; he also noticed the pig send him a smile, a comforting one that reassured him that his training would be enough to get him through the war. His eyes then drifted to Tommy, who was the most impactful of all as he wore the intertwined grass crown on top of his head, as if excited to show off the beautiful piece of clothing Fundy had made to apologise to him. Tubbo was third, the boy now looking determined as ever as he wielded the crossbows they had worked on endlessly that night in honour, ready to fight for L'manburg. Fourth was Niki, who stood by his side with a grin on her face and her hand gently grasping Fundy's to ease his nerves, and he was thankful she was still there as a grounding force in his overwhelming insecurities.

Finally Wilbur stood in front of him, a newfound resolute emotion in his eyes as he stood his ground, the wind blowing his trench coat as he clutched his fist to his chest. The mighty sword he wielded since L'manburg days strapped to his side. “POGTOPIA, TODAY WE FIGHT FOR OUR L’MANBURG TO BE SAVED, TODAY WE FIGHT FOR US. FOREVER AND ALWAYS.”

Cheers echo amongst the Pogtopians, and Fundy continues to smile at them all as he feels the confidence in him swell up. He knew that today he was heading into battle, one that would be bloody and scary and extremely unpredictable, but at least he had his family by his side. 

**Author's Note:**

> SPOILERS FOR 16th NOV STREAM, 2020:
> 
> HOLY SHIT? WHAT FUCKING HAPPENED? THE TAKE OVER OF MANBURG? SCHLATT'S DEATH? WILBUR PRESSING THE FUCKING BUTTON? PHILZA MINECRAFT JOINING? CONNOR JOINING??? TECHNO A TRAITOR (honestly we all saw this coming like COME ON)?? LIKE WHAT WAS THAT STREAM.
> 
> also i see so much angst potential in the fundy and schlatt scene in the van, the way he fucking disrespects him, and then wilbur steps in and is like "are you ready to die schlatt?" for what he's saying to his son,, the potentials oooo i love it.


End file.
